Health Heroes in Our Midst

At the Good Housekeeping Research Institute (GHRI), we're not just focused on consumer product testing but also on consumer advocacy. In our 113–year history, we've taken strong stances on many health and safety issues, including: food safety (beginning with championing the passage of the Pure Food and Drug Act in 1906), maternal and infant health (encouraging readers in 1921 to support a law funding maternity and infant care and, in 1996, urging readers to write their Washington representatives to fight 24-hour-and-under hospital stays for newborn deliveries), cigarette smoking (by banning cigarette ads in Good Housekeeping magazine since 1952), and amusement park dangers (asking readers to contact legislators to pass the National Amusement Park Ride Safety Act of 2009). Inevitably, as we've addressed health and safety risks facing American families, we've encountered many incredible individuals on the forefront who, as grass roots advocates, have been supremely dedicated and focused in their efforts to make positive change.

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As I'm sure you've seen in your own communities, there are many heroes all around us—people who take on a strong advocacy roles, and through guts and determination and huge amounts of energy draw attention to important causes. When my college friend Wendy Rosen Landes was diagnosed five years ago with liposarcoma, an extremely rare soft tissue cancer with a very poor prognosis, her response was shock. She was in seemingly excellent health and a role model of being fit and active. Her positive, attitude persisted, even after she endured many lengthy surgeries and continuous rounds of chemotherapy, radiation, and alternative treatments. What was equally as impressive and heroic was the reaction of Wendy's three children—Ali, Matt, and Jackie, then ages 21, 21, and 16, respectively, upon hearing her diagnosis. Devastated by the news of their mother's illness and the fact that so little is known about it (it's considered an "orphan disease" since it's so rare), they sprang into action and created The Wendy Walk, an annual walk that takes place in Miami, New York City, and Los Angeles. To date, the Wendy Walk has raised 1.3 million dollars, all of which goes to funding groundbreaking cooperative research on liposarcoma.

This year the Wendy Walk will take place in Miami on April 14, in New York on April 28, and in Los Angeles on May 5. This year it will be different. Wendy passed away on March 14 after her heroic five-year battle. Her impact was such that 700 people attended her memorial service in LA, and 400 attended her funeral in New York. As a lawyer, Wendy brought her heart to her profession by dedicating herself to divorce mediation, insistent that just because a couple divorces they don't need to be enemies and create a hostile environment for themselves and their children. Wendy's children have followed her example—bringing their hearts and their incredible love for their mom—to focus on the fight to help cure liposarcoma. Like all advocates, they are passionate—and their commitment to this cause continues.

Who are the heroes in your life, passionately working to make a difference? Please write and let us know!